Speaking at a BIMSTEC forum on Tuesday, Home Minister Amit Shah urged member states to strengthen collective action on terrorism — encompassing the funding channels that keep such networks operational and the organised crime structures frequently intertwined with them — alongside coordinated measures to deny militant groups any base of operations across the region.

At the inaugural Home Ministers' Meeting of BIMSTEC nations, held in New Delhi, Shah put forward a stance of zero tolerance on terrorism as a cornerstone of the country's approach. Mutual trust within the BIMSTEC partnership draws strength, he argued, from a shared conviction that each member nation's defence posture reinforces the safety of its fellow members.

Shah's remarks centred on a shared pledge among member states to block armed groups from gaining any foothold on their territories — whether as refuge, a base for operations, a site for training recruits, a channel for gathering resources, or a corridor for attacks directed at neighbouring members.

Extending the call to all member states, he pressed for active collaboration on mutual legal assistance and extradition procedures within the bounds of domestic legislation and relevant treaties, noting that coordinated action of this kind would bolster collective capacity to hold offenders accountable.

Counterterrorism and law enforcement topped the list of priorities the Home Minister put forward, with a push for sharing usable intelligence through established nodal bodies and tighter coordination on disrupting terrorist financing and organised criminal networks. Shah argued that prompt exchange of verified, usable intelligence on militant networks — covering their associates, funding streams, and cross-border movements — could reinforce shared security frameworks.

Shah told those gathered that narcotics trafficking across borders requires a coordinated response from the broader region, not action by any single nation acting on its own. Revenue generated through narcotics trafficking flows into criminal networks, where it bolsters their operational capacity and, in some cases, funds extremist violence. He noted that the problem is compounded by the rerouting of precursor chemicals through illicit online marketplaces and the use of anonymous digital transactions.

Prior to the gathering, Shah posted on X to announce that New Delhi had been chosen to host the first-ever BIMSTEC Home Ministers' Meeting, set for 13 October 2026, and noted that India viewed the occasion as a point of national pride. Greetings were extended to the Home Ministers and member state delegations gathered for the occasion.

The talks addressed a range of shared security concerns, including terrorism, transnational organised crime, drug trafficking, radicalisation, illicit financial flows, and threats in the cyber domain.

BIMSTEC — the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation, a seven-nation grouping that brings together Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Thailand — issued a statement pledging continued efforts toward greater stability and resilience across the region through coordinated action among its members. Fostering economic and technical ties among nations that share the Bay of Bengal coastline or lie within its broader regional orbit forms the central purpose of the body.